DOCTOR JUSTICE

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Feb 18, 2018 - University of Edinburgh: Comic Epidemic: Cartoons, Caricatures and ... 'Doctor Justice' is a comics developed by Jean Ollivier and Carlo ...
Dr Predrag Duric Institute for Global Health and Development Queen Margaret University Edinburgh

’DOCTOR JUSTICE’ AS AN EXAMPLE OF EPIDEMIC RESPONSE IN COMICS

(Centre for Research in the Arts, Social Sciences and Humanities of the University of Cambridge and the University of Edinburgh: Comic Epidemic: Cartoons, Caricatures and Graphic Novels conference. Cambridge: 1618 February, 2018)

‘Doctor Justice’ is a comics developed by Jean Ollivier and Carlo Marcello in 1970. During the next 24 years 155 episodes were published in France (in PIF magazine, with several hundred thousands readers, in the magazine ‘Dr. Justice’ and in comic albums), but also in Germany, Spain, Greece, the Netherlands, Italy, Yugoslavia, Hungary, Romania, Czechoslovakia and probably in some other countries. It became one of the most popular comics of that time. A same-name movie was recorded in France in 1975. The leading character of the comics is doctor Benjamin Justice, a doctor who works for World Health Organisation (WHO). His role is described at the beginning of each episode: “My name is Justice. Doctor Benjamin Justice. I am a doctor attached to WHO. Somehow a flying doctor, subscriber of international flights”. In each episode, we follow Dr. Justice in a field mission, like fighting epidemics (e.g. malaria in Oman, yellow fever in Indonesia, cholera in the Philippines, smallpox in Colombia and pandemic influenza in Europe), participates in international conferences or provides technical or financial support to health systems all over the world. However, during the missions Dr. Justice is a witness of health inequities, human trafficking, orphanage, smuggling of medicines, corruption or unethical behaviour of pharmaceutic companies and governments. While comics and graphic novels have been recently used in patient care, health education and the social critique of medical profession,’ Doctor Justice’ is one of the rare examples of using an adventure comics to promote the role of WHO in global health governance and presenting outbreak response in different settings. The particular value of ‘Dr. Justice’ is the fact that a didactical approach to describe epidemic control is avoided. The comics rather emphasises social and other contextual factors that prevent an effective epidemic response. Epidemics are usually only a background for adventures. This approach makes the comics very attractive for a broad audience. However, this approach does not use epidemic response just as a décor: readers can understand the importance of vaccination during outbreaks, clinical case management (e.g. building cholera treatment centres), social mobilisation and behavioural change. ‘Dr. Justice’ remains one of the rare examples how adventure comics and graphic novels can be used to promote the role of WHO and to present epidemic response.